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Last Update: 10/26/2026 at 11:33 PM EST
Georgia’s Data Center Expansion
Coverage from Georgia Recorder, AJC, and others
Data-center development in Georgia includes large proposed campuses near Savannah and projects across the Atlanta region, alongside questions about how communities and utilities accommodate their power and land needs.
Georgia Power’s generation and transmission planning, local zoning and approvals, and tax incentives shape where projects proceed and how their costs and benefits are distributed. Residents, officials, businesses, and environmental groups have raised issues including electricity rates, water access, land acquisition, transparency, jobs, and tax revenue. Understanding the buildout means looking at both the facilities and the public decisions and infrastructure tied to them.
Looking Back
138 Day Timeline
May 15
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All Articles50 articles
Important
Georgia taxpayers face billions in data center tax breaks as Jay Bookman criticizes opaque approvals and rising infrastructure demands in Effingham County and elsewhere.
9/3/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia regulators ordered VoltaGrid to stop construction in Covington on a gas-fired off-grid power plant intended to supply a nearby Serverfarm data center after permit violations were reported.
7/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Georgia EPD said VoltaGrid likely violated air quality rules after eight natural gas generators were installed at a Newton County data center before permitting.
7/7/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Georgia EPD issued notices of violation after inspecting a VoltaGrid and Serverfarm pop-up power plant supporting a Covington data center, amid allegations of construction without permits.
7/7/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Science for Georgia estimates that proposed Georgia data centers could require 29 to 58 gigawatts, exceeding Georgia Power's authorized expansion across the state.
8/11/2026 • Power Procurement & Grid • General
Science for Georgia reported that proposed Georgia data centers could require 29 to 58 gigawatts, potentially exceeding Georgia Power's authorized generation capacity statewide.
8/10/2026 • Power Procurement & Grid • General
Georgia residents in Albany, Mitchell County, and Monticello organized public opposition during July to speculative data-center siting and power infrastructure expansion.
7/28/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
OpenAI and other developers advanced three major Georgia data center projects in January 2026, prompting residents and officials in Savannah-area and Atlanta communities to contest infrastructure and oversight impacts.
7/30/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Sustainable Newton, Altamaha Riverkeeper, and Southern Environmental Law Center urged Georgia EPD on June 25 to investigate and halt VoltaGrid and ServerFarm work in Covington over alleged missing air permits.
7/2/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Keisha Lance Bottoms and Rick Jackson clashed Monday in Georgia over data center investments, development standards and community impacts tied to proposed projects.
9/7/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
The Georgia Chamber of Commerce will brief Georgia policymakers in September on data-center development amid growing statewide opposition over water, power, and local impacts.
8/25/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia Power plans a new transmission line in Georgia for data-center demand, requiring acquisition of more than 300 parcels and prompting eminent-domain concerns from affected residents.
7/13/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia Power is contested by residents over Project Wansley in Georgia's Coweta and Fayette counties, where 500-kilovolt transmission siting affects hundreds of properties.
5/21/2026 • Power Procurement & Grid • General
Georgia Power plans the Ashley Park-Wansley transmission line through four Georgia counties after PSC approval of a 2025 resource plan tied to AI data center demand.
7/26/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Interesting
In 2026, Drawdown Georgia released a statewide toolkit in Georgia to help communities evaluate data center proposals and participate in local decisions.
9/21/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia Power is advancing a transmission-line project through four west Georgia counties toward a Coweta County data-center site, prompting recent opposition from Grantville residents over property takings.
8/2/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia Power is advancing a 35-mile transmission-line project for a proposed data center in Coweta County, Georgia, while Ansley Brown and affected residents oppose property impacts.
7/28/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Josh Levi-led data center advocacy groups ran a June 2026 Georgia ad campaign as protests and 2026 zoning and tax bills targeted rapid data center buildout.
7/27/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Wayne County residents and community organizers gathered Sunday in Jesup, Georgia, to discuss influencing a pending city data center ordinance.
9/14/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
OpenAIs $20 million Effingham County data center plan in Georgia faced local and state scrutiny as residents questioned environmental and water impacts and regulators examined power cost responsibility.
7/25/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Raphael Warnock urged a statewide Georgia data-center moratorium after visiting Effingham County residents opposing OpenAI's planned facility and its 3,200-megawatt Georgia Power contract.
9/6/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
In July in Guyton, Georgia, Senator Raphael Warnock called for a statewide data-center moratorium over community concerns about OpenAI's planned Project Camellia in Rincon.
8/29/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Senator Raphael Warnock called for a statewide Georgia data-center moratorium on Friday after visiting residents opposing OpenAI's planned 3,200-megawatt facility in Effingham County.
8/28/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Raphael Warnock called for a Georgia moratorium on data center construction after visiting OpenAI's proposed Rincon facility in Effingham County and criticizing confidential project negotiations.
8/28/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Georgia Power says revised contract and upfront infrastructure cost rules for data centers aim to protect residential and small-business customers while funding grid upgrades in Georgia.
7/15/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
As AI infrastructure expands, Georgia Power and an unnamed Fortune 500 developer are pursuing land for data-center projects in Georgia and Kentucky, prompting resident opposition over displacement and eminent-domain pressure.
8/2/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Rich McCormick and Tony Kozycki are contesting Georgia data center expansion, including Project Camellia in Effingham County, amid debate over jobs, electricity demand, and ratepayer protections.
9/6/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia gubernatorial candidates Keisha Lance Bottoms and Rick Jackson disputed statewide data-center development as Bartow County considered rezoning farmland near Cartersville.
8/7/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
On July 28, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Keisha Lance Bottoms, and local residents debated data center expansion, power infrastructure, and annexation concerns across Georgia.
7/28/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Bulloch and other coastal Georgia counties discuss zoning and permitting for potential data center proposals amid groundwater red-zone limits and power and storm-resilience concerns.
5/21/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Homeowners in Coweta and Fayette counties, Georgia, oppose Georgia Power transmission easement efforts tied to Project Sail, alleging eminent domain pressure and undervaluation.
5/18/2026 • Power Procurement & Grid • General
Georgia Power disputed eminent domain easements with Coweta and Fayette county landowners in relation to Project Sail transmission upgrades as data center development expands.
5/18/2026 • Power Procurement & Grid • General
Georgia Power is requesting a Fayette County transmission-line easement as data-center demand accelerates across metro Atlanta.
5/15/2026 • Power Procurement & Grid • General
Fayette County data center construction in Georgia prompts calls for transparency on water and cooling systems and on grid and land-use impacts as development expands.
7/4/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Georgia residents in Newnan, Marietta, Garden City, and Forsyth protested proposed data centers, focusing on utility rates, incentives, and zoning and permitting decisions.
7/20/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
In 2026, Georgia gubernatorial candidates Keisha Lance Bottoms and Rick Jackson proposed opposing approaches to data center development across Georgia, with Bottoms favoring a temporary statewide pause and Jackson emphasizing local control.
9/29/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Tricia Pridemore left Georgia's Public Service Commission for DC BLOX in September, taking a regulatory role as the company expands data centers in Georgia and South Carolina.
9/17/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Georgia Public Service Commission approved a new investigation in Georgia on industrial pricing impacts, focused on data center customers and residential cost pass-through as of Tuesday.
7/7/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Georgia Public Service Commission regulators approved a Real Time Pricing fuel-cost investigation involving Georgia Power and large industrial customers, with a December 31 conclusion target.
7/10/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Georgia Tech EPIcenter launched the Georgia Data Center Ordinance Hub to help Georgia communities regulate new data-center development amid grid strain concerns.
7/16/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Georgia data center developers, utilities, officials, and residents are contesting power costs, land use, water impacts, taxes, and approvals as artificial intelligence investment accelerates statewide construction.
6/3/2026 • Infrastructure & Site Development • General
CBRE reported that Atlanta led U.S. data center construction in the first half of 2026, with 2,882 megawatts under development amid growing infrastructure and community concerns.
9/1/2026 • Infrastructure & Site Development • General
Additional
Raphael Warnock urged a moratorium on new data centers in Georgia during an Effingham County visit, citing utility costs, secrecy, pollution, and community control concerns.
9/3/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
CBRE reported a 1% Atlanta data center vacancy rate in March as Georgia communities raised concerns over noise, land use, taxes, and electricity demand.
6/26/2026 • Market Demand & Investment • General
Gov. Brian Kemp said Georgia should avoid blanket moratoriums on data centers as Effingham County residents questioned diesel backup generator plans for OpenAI's $20 billion facility.
7/27/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Thor Equities submitted plans in 2020s for a 150MW, $1 billion data center in Kingston, Georgia, with completion targeted for 2030.
9/14/2026 • Infrastructure & Site Development • General
Keisha Lance Bottoms is seeking a pause on new Georgia data center development during her gubernatorial campaign, citing the effects of large campuses across the state.
9/4/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp opposed a proposed statewide pause on data center construction while addressing community concerns about OpenAI's $20 billion Effingham County project.
7/28/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Georgia voters choose PSC District 5 candidates as electricity rate regulation by Georgia Power shapes affordability and cost conditions for datacenter electricity and cooling loads.
6/13/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Raphael Warnock and Brian Kemp are opposing positions on a proposed statewide data center moratorium in Georgia as communities debate electricity, water, environmental, and local-control impacts.
9/1/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General